DNA sequencing has catapulted into the mainstream. A company called Ion Torrent has pioneered an approach to sequencing that uses semiconductor technology and simple chemistry for sequencing. Ion Torrent translates chemical signals into digital data, eliminating the use of light-producing chemistry. The technology makes sequencing affordable to most labs. The chip enables RNA sequencing, which provides better results than the microarray scanners used today. Ion Proton chips have 165 million wells, and the company says its approach can scale to 660 million wells.

Nancy Golden, To get involve with UAV development is a matter of ordering a quadcopter kit and building it. UAV applications are endless as well as the research in non-operator flight controls and teleoperations with smartphones is just the tip of the iceberg in this scientific arena. A group of Capstone Students here at the Madison, AL ITT Tech campus are building a quadcopter from scratch using an Arduino as the brains for their UAV. Pretty impressive stuff they've built. Also, here's a link to Parallax Elev-8 Quadcopter kit for an additional reference.http://www.parallax.com/StoreSearchResults/tabid/768/txtSearch/Quadcopter/List/0/SortField/4/ProductID/799/Default.aspx

I agree there were several left off of the list but I'm sure each technology thinks it's the "next big thing". We live in fascinating times as far as technology goes. I would love to get in a time machine and flash forward 50 years. (I will say a well designed time machine) I'll bet we would not recognize the technology thought to be commonplace. I know there are truly fascinating things happening in the biomedical engineering fields that will not only save lives but extend lives. Exciting times.

I'm with you on the UAV's mrdon - they have great potential for lots of useful applications - thanks for sharing the website. In my opinion, many of these are niche technologies, so for me some are hard to get excited about, but I would imagine if you are in that particular field you would be very excited. Interesting to read about CERN and the laws of physics supposedly being proven with their discovery - it brings back memories of the Super Collider in Waxahachie and the great hopes that were placed there. Not surprising to read about the evolving semiconductor technologies - it is the nature of the beast. As the demands of technology change, semiconductor manufacturers will need to respond with R&D or be left in the dust.

I'm with you on the UAV's mrdon - they have great potential for lots of useful applications - thanks for sharing the website. In my opinion, many of these are niche technologies, so for me some are hard to get excited about, but I would imagine if you are in that particular field you would be very excited. Interesting to read about CERN and the laws of physics supposedly being proven with their discovery - it brings back memories of the Super Collider in Waxahachie and the great hopes that were placed there. Not surprising to read about the evolving semiconductor technologies - it is the nature of the beast. As the demands of technology change, semiconductor manufacturers will need to respond with R&D or be left in the dust.

There's some fascinating stuff here, and I think your predictions are fairly accurate given the activity in various inustries. I personally am excited about developments in solar cells, as I am hoping the use and adoption of alternative energy trends significantly upward this year. It really is the way forward and the way out of fossil-fuel dependence.

I can see wireless lighting controlling technologies being a significant contributor for 2013 because of the potential to reduce energy cost. The Philips' Hue Lighting System is a cool interactive control that allows you to select light receipes for various activities and events. In viewing the video, not quite sure how it falls within The Internet of Things concept because of the no data storage capability to the Cloud. Although, the slide says it works with both iOS and Android devices, the Hue Lighting System website says it can be purchased at any Apple Store. Check out the video with this link. www.meethue.com

This idea of cloud computing is a significant technology for the inventor who's interested in developing a product without the overhead of equipment. Cloud computing manufacturing makes for an intriguing business model for the service sector. I'm very interested to see how this manufacturing trend turns out for 3D printing industry with companies like MakerBot and Solidoodle who build reasonable machines for small manufacturers, trade schools, and makers. Here's a link to Solidoodle for additional information about their 3D printer. http://www.solidoodle.com/

It won't be too much longer and hardware design, as we used to know it, will be remembered alongside the slide rule and the Karnaugh map. You will need to move beyond those familiar bits and bytes into the new world of software centric design.

People who want to take advantage of solar energy in their homes no longer need to install a bolt-on solar-panel system atop their houses -- they can integrate solar-energy-harvesting shingles directing into an existing or new roof instead.

Kaspersky Labs indicated at its February meeting that cyber attacks are far more sophisticated than previous thought. It turns out even air-gapping (disconnecting computers from the Internet to protect against cyber intrusion) isn’t a foolproof way to avoid getting hacked. And Kaspersky implied the NSA is the smartest attacker.

Focus on Fundamentals consists of 45-minute on-line classes that cover a host of technologies. You learn without leaving the comfort of your desk. All classes are taught by subject-matter experts and all are archived. So if you can't attend live, attend at your convenience.